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Ordinary People Taking Action
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Live What You Love8/27/2018 A bracelet that I received several years ago is inscribed, “live what you love”. Not only do I wear this bracelet every single day, it also became the inspiration for the tagline of my business, Thinking People Consulting.
Let’s back up a few years. I had just given notice to a job that I loved, working with people I loved and for the most part, doing what I loved. I wasn’t, however, in an environment that I loved. It’s only looking back that I can see it clearly. I was going to work every day to an environment that wasn’t allowing me to feel supported, to stay engaged and to feel valued. As I was leaving this job, my colleague gave me the bracelet, with a message that said, “Go live what you love in an environment that you also love. While searching for that environment don’t forget your magic, your strengths, your dedication and your commitment. You’ll move mountains, oh the places you’ll go.” The last part of that note is from my absolute favorite book, Oh, the Places You’ll Go, by Dr. Seuss. “Oh, the places you’ll go” is the quote on the second bracelet this same colleague gave me, on the same day. I wear both bracelets daily.
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Popcorn Effect8/24/2018 Have you ever made popcorn? One “pop.” Then another. Then another. And then the popping goes crazy. Problems proliferate in the same way.
I heard this today and love it. It’s so true for problems – for many things really. How often is it that you’re in a situation where you notice one thing (good or bad) and then all of a sudden that thing is all you see? The popcorn analogy is perfect.
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The questions are important.8/22/2018 Lately I have been asking my coaching clients this question: how do you show up? For those who aren’t sure, here’s a great way to visualize it. Imagine a line, which is a continuum between you showing up as your best self and you showing up as the opposite of your best. Think about various times throughout the day and how you show up in those moments. I think many of us will agree that where we sit on this continuum varies throughout the day.
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Imperfection Day6/25/2018 I wish I could create a new holiday. If I could it would be “Celebrating Imperfections Day”. I think we all need it, at least I know I do. Especially today.
I’m a perfectionist at heart. While I am not good at math, in everything that doesn’t involve numbers, I strive for and want perfection. If “Celebrating Imperfections Day” was a holiday, this would be my greeting card:
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Moments6/18/2018 It’s interesting how we are quick to praise or criticize coaches of athletes, yet all agree it’s a necessary role. Yet, in the business world, we are slow to hire or truly appreciate the value of coaches. Don’t get me wrong, just like in sports, there are strong professional and executive coaches – ones that deserve praise – and there are those who are worthy of criticism. The key is to note the strengths of each coach as an individual and find one that fits your style and your needs.
I have spent the last nine days straight on the sidelines watching sports – and therefore coaches – as my son competed in two basketball tournaments and a regional soccer tournament. As I think about the importance of coaching, my son’s soccer coach comes to mind. This has everything to do with business coaching but bear with me while I lay some context around this last week of U14 soccer.
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Perception Shifts6/12/2018 Today’s post centers around a needs assessment I’m creating for a group at Amazon. That’s about as much as I can say publicly about the project at this time, so while I won’t be blogging about the project itself, I do want to zero in on an “aha moment” I experienced while working on it.
The first step in the process was to produce a draft and send it to my client for review. Although I have created and run several needs assessments throughout my career, it’s not something I’ve done for the specific function of the group I am supporting now. We knew going into the project that I would provide L&D expertise and my client would provide functional and technical knowledge. We were prepared for a joint effort.
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Communication Intention6/7/2018 As I go about my days, I’m met with frequent reminders of the difficulties we face when it comes to communication. As people, we all tend to believe that effective communication comes naturally to us. So, when there are misunderstandings, we are often quick to assume it’s the other person who doesn’t understand – that the miscommunication isn’t because of anything we’ve done.
When I am coaching professionals and students, we talk a lot about intention vs perception. Statistics report that 92% of humans wake up each morning with positive intention, meaning it is not our goal to create conflict. In fact, it’s the opposite. We have a goal (even if it’s unconscious) to build strong, harmonious relationships.
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Perspective Shifts5/24/2018 Writing is a tricky thing. I am beginning to believe that all writers go through several phases of thinking, and therefore believing, they are not good enough. It’s a feeling I often get when I read over an article of mine. Then this morning, a colleague reached out for advice on how to get started writing more – and added that he thought my articles were really good. Perspective shift.
In writing these articles, I consistently balance my commitment to maintaining the privacy of others and sheltering a bit of myself – my family, my life. There is some measure of vulnerability in sharing personal stories. That said, today I am choosing to write about experiences with my family over the last week, as I think many will be able to relate.
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Resiliency in disguise5/10/2018 A straight line brings predictability. I love predictability – devising a plan and then watching it materialize. Yet, my friends will often say that they think I am spontaneous and have a “go-with-the-flow” approach to life. Some might call that more of a curved line. What I’ve come to learn is that this perceived spontaneity is, in fact, something else – resiliency in disguise.
I’ll give you an example. In January, I gave notice to my employer. As is the case for most people giving notice, I had a strategy and plan in place. My strategy was, in short, to launch my own consulting practice. My plan was, in short, to land two big projects relatively quickly after coming off payroll from my employer. I needed the plan – the belief in the plan – to rationalize that jump.
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The Soccer Game5/7/2018 Teamwork is about taking fault as a team.
Exciting news today. My son’s soccer team played in the championship game for the President’s State Cup. This isn’t the first time they’ve gotten this far. They won this tournament last year as well, going on to represent Washington State in the Regional President’s Cup tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was a very big deal last year; it was an even bigger deal this year. The possibility of becoming second-year champions was within reach. These boys poured their hearts out this weekend. They held nothing back on Saturday as they advanced and again yesterday in the final game. They all knew their role – they passed, they ran, they supported each other. They played as a team. |